LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The Kentucky Department of Education answered questions before lawmakers Tuesday, addressing why it predicted a multimillion-dollar shortfall in critical funding the state provides to school districts.
In a letter made public last month, Education Commissioner Robbie Fletcher said KDE is "tracking an estimated SEEK shortfall of $12 million for funding to public school districts provided in Kentucky statutes. KDE estimates an additional shortfall of $28 million for funding to public school districts that is specifically conditioned on the availability of funds."
On Tuesday, Fletcher and his team addressed some reasons it predicted the shortfall.
SEEK is a formula-driven allocation of state funds to Kentucky's school districts. Fletcher said it uses numbers to predict estimates two years in advance. For example, it began working on 2025 estimates in 2023.
Fletcher and his team said it underestimated two student groups that require more funding to be allocated: English language learners and special education students.
"The ELL population has exploded," Fletcher said. "We missed, underestimated by almost 8,000 students there, approximately. Special needs has also increased tremendously, and all of these are SEEK inputs and add-ons part of SEEK."
"Developing a biennial budget for public school funding is a complex process that involves estimating many future conditions – such as growth in the number of students and types of students (like those receiving special education services or English learners) and the growth in property values throughout the Commonwealth," Fletcher said in his initial letter sent last month. "KDE staff and the Kentucky Office of the State Budget Director work collaboratively to gather data projecting property values, public school enrollments and student special populations to inform the Kentucky General Assembly as they adopt a biennial budget. But these projections are always estimates using the best data available at the time. If estimates are too low, a funding shortage is always a possibility."
KDE said a shortfall has occurred four times between the 2010-2024 fiscal years. Since 2017, there has been a surplus, according to KDE. Fletcher added that last fiscal year, there was a $156.3 million surplus and that money was transferred to the state general fund which is required by the legislature.
Fletcher said KDE is working with other state departments to explore funding options that could address the shortfall. The numbers must be finalized in March.
Related Stories:
- KDE predicts $40 million shortfall in SEEK funding for next school year
- Kentucky test data shows improvement in some areas, JCPS reading and math scores slightly decline
- 'We can see it in sight' | Kentucky school report card shows JCPS lags behind state averages
- Representative of Kentucky superintendents calls for changes to state testing requirements
- Kentucky has done 'adequate' job of managing $2 billion in COVID-19 pandemic funds, federal audit shows
Copyright 2025 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
